Consider It Joy...

I hate trials and testing....

The Lord promises they will come; one might say they are unavoidable.... Paul talks about having joy during trials.... Peter talks about how trials are good for our growth, and not to be surprised when they come.... James tells us to consider trials as joy and a gift. I know I can't live without them...and that God is working in me good things...I also know they make me more appreciative of the the good times. Trials rain on the just and the unjust alike. Some are easier to handle than others, but joy in the midst...I am still working on that one.

I have been learning a lot through this place of trials and testing. I ask the Lord when will I become good at trials, and I sure part of the answer is heaven, but do you or I realize, we have a living hope here on earth, in the midst of theses trials? We CAN be good at trials now. Where do you or I turn in the midst of trials? Do we turn to trust our own strength or logic? God is developing and working on us now through these trials, and He isn't caught off guard, even when we are.

I think it is all about our foundation...is a trial going to shake our foundation. When your life is in Christ, then you have a solid foundation built not on your strength, but on the everlasting foundation of the great I AM. I feel this entry may produce several emails and phone calls, but I just wanted to share a taste of what the Lord has been teaching me. Our job is to focus on not letting the enemy steal our joy, as he will try...its his job and even more so his nature. Do these trials come as a form a persecution? Sometimes and other times to REFINE us a purpose, HIS purpose.

I think I am seeing preparation for these trials or battles in daily life in Christ. I want to be connected to the one who is all knowing, and the ONE who is at my side, the ONE who is my refuge and my strength, stay in touch with my living hope.

May this serve to encourage you to run a good race and fight the good fight. Press on in the Lord and in the POWER of HIS MIGHT!